A heart pump, such as a ventricular assist device (“VAD”), aids people suffering from severe ventricular heart failure in leading active and productive lives. A heart pump is typically connected to the left ventricle of the heart. One end of a tube, such as a graft, is connected to the heart pump and the other end is connected to the ascending aorta or the descending aorta. Once connected, the heart pump pumps blood from the left ventricle to the ascending or descending aorta to improve blood flow.
To connect a heart pump to a patient, surgeons use a connector, called a sewing ring. A sewing ring is attached to the myocardium of the heart by the use of sutures. A hole is then cored in the myocardium that acts as an entry site for a ventricular assist device. An inflow tube or cannula from the heart pump is inserted through this hole. For the implantation to be successful, however, the cored hole must be centered within the sewing ring and sized appropriately with respect to the sewing ring so that there is minimal leaking between the ventricular wall and the installed inflow tube.
To initiate coring, a surgeon must first make a manual “cross” or “crux” cut in the ventricle wall. A retractable coring tool is then inserted through the crux cut and used to form the hole. If the surgeon is not careful, the hole can be formed off-center with respect to the sewing ring, or the tissue that is cored from the heart can fall into the ventricle. Either of these situations can have negative effects on the transplant procedure. For instance, if the hole is not centered relative to the sewing ring, bleeding can occur at the inflow tube—ventricle interface. Moreover, the ease of placement of the VAD is degraded. If cored tissue falls into the ventricle, the surgeon will have to retrieve the tissue, thereby increasing blood loss due to additional time added to the procedure. Accordingly, what is needed is a coring tool that allows surgeons to core a precise hole in the center of the sewing ring and to easily retrieve the cored tissue so as to prevent the tissue from falling into the ventricle.